The Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada (Butler Snow) Foundation has awarded a $25,751 grant to The University of Southern Mississippi Children’s Center for Communication and Development for its project focusing on Early Intervention, Literacy and School Readiness for Young Children with Significant Disabilities.

“The USM Children’s Center for Communication and Development creates programs that significantly enrich the lives of its participants and the community it serves, so we are very honored to support this project,” said Foundation chair and Butler Snow attorney Thomas E. Williams. “We applaud the Center for its contributions to early intervention for children with developmental challenges. Early intervention is critical to creating a positive future for young children with disabilities.”

Representatives from Butler Snow will make the grant presentation to The Children’s Center during a special ceremony set for Monday, April 23 from 10 a.m.-noon on the first floor of the J.B. George Building, room 109.

The Children’s Center for Communication and Development provides an interdisciplinary team approach to the assessment and treatment of communicatively – and developmentally – delayed children ages birth through five years. Services are either home-based or center-based, depending on a child’s needs. Services are also geared to train and support families, university students and professionals.

“We are grateful to the Butler Snow Foundation for this generous gift,” said Southern Miss President Martha D. Saunders. “Their contribution will enable The Children’s Center for Communication and Development to continue to make a difference in the lives of children and their families.”

The funds provided by Butler Snow will be used in part to purchase a variety of high-tech therapy and classroom devices to support language development, fine and gross motor skills and to support behavioral and social development. In addition to technology devices, funds will be used to purchase valuable testing and assessment tools.

Children are assessed and reassessed to determine their most current needs and to determine if a child’s comprehensive treatment and educational plan should be modified. New technologies and assessment tools give The Children’s Center more opportunities to focus on children’s abilities, to meet their needs and to have them ready to transition into their communities before they turn age six.

“It is gratifying to have Butler Snow recognize the daily challenges faced by our families,” said Children’s Center Director Cindy Bivins. “This generous gift will help us make life-changing differences for the children and families we serve, directly and indirectly, throughout Mississippi.”

The Children’s Center follows the calendar schedule of local public schools. Services are coordinated with each child’s local school district and include speech-language pathology, special education, audiology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, psychology, augmentative/alternative communication, at-risk follow-up, parent education and a resource loan library.

The Butler Show Foundation, established in 1997 by a gift from a client of the law firm, selects worthy causes or social services organizations in the area and uses the Foundation’s funds to help make a difference. Since its inception, the Foundation has supported organizations such as the Mississippi Episcopal AIDS Committee, Hand-on-Memphis and the Boys & Girls Club of the Gulf Coast. For more information visit: www.butlersnow.com